Women's Golf

Women's Golf To Host Annual Colby Classic

Mar 21, 2003

March 21, 2003

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -
The Santa Clara University returns to action Monday following a week full of final exams when it hosts the seventh annual Colby Classic at Rancho Canada Golf Club in Carmel, Calif.

In addition to the host Broncos, the tournament will feature teams from Cal Poly, Cal State Montery Bay, Cal State San Marcos, Eastern Washington, Gonzaga, Harvard, Northern Iowa, Sacramento State, UC Santa Cruz and the University of British Columbia. The 36-hole tournament will open Monday morning at 8:45 a.m. with all 11 teams playing the 5,801-yard, par 71 East Course. On Tuesday the first teams tee-off at 8:30 a.m. from the 5,937-yard, par 72 West Course.

"On both courses you will find holes that are in high demand for accuracy," said SCU Head Coach Polly Schulze. "The design of certain holes requires that you can place the ball on one side of the fairway off the tee and then place the ball again on your second shot leaving a tough approach to the green. The courses are both flat with fairly large greens requiring hitting extra clubs to a deep pin. This is the type of course that we score well on and I hope it will transfer to a really good finish for us."

Last year's two-time defending champion, Cal State Northridge, is not entered in this year's event so it is certain that a new team will take home the championship trophy. Last season, the Matadors finished 24 strokes ahead of second-place Sacramento State and placed each of the top two finishers in the individual standings.

"This year's field is slightly different than those of the past," said Schulze. "Of course we have British Columbia who has not missed a showing since the inception of the Colby.
We do look forward to hosting three new teams this year in Harvard, Northern Iowa and UC Santa Cruz, which is in its first year of play. Again, this is a field that we feel we should should do well in. The girls know the field and the course and are excited about the opportunity to finish high in the field."

Following the Colby Classic, the Santa Clara women's golf team will prepare for the annual West Coast Conference Championships, scheduled for April 14-15 in Fresno, Calif.

"The team is playing very well right now in practice and we are consistently shooting scores in the 70's resulting in team scores of anywhere from 308 to 318," said SChulze. "We are learning how to replicate those performances in tournament play.

"The Colby is a great warm-up for conference for us. We have a goal of placing in the top three at the Colby and our goal for conference is to finish third. These are high goals and the girls are going to have to play their absolute best at the Colby to come in 3rd or higher. I have seen their talent in practice and once we learn how to put it in play under pressure, there is no stopping this team."

Results from the Colby Classic will be available each day on Santa Clara's official athletic website at www.SantaClaraBroncos.com.